Vision Saints Series Part 1

The Vision book series is a series of short biographies of Catholic saints and holy men and women. They were written for children, aged nine to twelve, and published in the 1950's. Because each book is written by a different author, the quality and style of writing varies. Some books are about well known saints like Thomas Aquinas or St. Theresa of Lisieux, while others are about lesser known saints such as Mother Cabrini and Father Damien. With the passage of time some of the books about men and women who led exemplary lives are dated in terms of the person's status in the church. For example, Father Damien de Veuster's cause is now complete and he is a saint whose feast day is May 10th.

Saint Pius X: The Farm Boy Who Became Pope by Walter Diethelm, tells the story of Guiseppe Sarto who became Pope Pius X. Bepi as he was affectionately known, was a poor farm boy who grew up in the village of Riese. This account stresses Bepi's life of holy poverty. As a priest, bishop, cardinal and even as the archbishop of Venice, Sarto gave away everything he had to help the poor.

Guiseppi Sarto was not just concerned about the material needs of people but also about their spiritual needs. While the spiritual director of the seminary in Treviso, Father Sarto diligently instructed his seminarians, leading them in prayer and doing all he could to ensure they would become faithful priests.

As Pope Pius X, he continued his support of the poor, giving away vast sums of money to support orphans and to help educate children. Pius X is most noted for changing the rules regarding the reception of Holy Communion for children. Before his pontificate, children did not make their First Holy Communion until they were eleven or twelve years of age. He was responsible for changing the rules to allow children as young as seven to receive the sacrament as long as they understood what the sacrament involved. Pius X was deeply distraught over World War I which was just beginning in 1914. He died before the war grew to involve most countries in Europe, desolate at the thought that so many would loose their lives.

In St. Helena and the True Cross, Catholic author Louis de Wohl traces Helena's transformation from the ambitious pagan wife of Legate Constantius to the devote Christian mother of her son, Emperor Constantine. Helena is believed to have been a royal princess of the Trinovants and the daughter of King Coel.

The story begins with Legate Constantius tricked into leaving his command in the province of Southern Britain to travel to Rome. Believing the request to come from the new emperor, Maximian, Constantius arrives in Rome to learn this was not the case. His two month journey has allowed a rebellion  led  Carausius and his Roman soldiers to succeed.

Back in Britain, Helena and her thirteen-year-old son Constantine flee north along with Centurion Marcus Favonius to escape the troops of Admiral Carausius who quickly takes control of the province of Britain.

Seven years later, Constantine, now twenty-years-old and his mother Helena are living in hiding in Verulam and still waiting for Rome to reclaim Britain. Carausius has been murdered and replaced by the traitorous Allectus. Then suddenly news arrives that Rome has returned to reclaim Britain. From a stolen report Helena learns that Constantius is leading a large force that has already reclaimed certain areas. She decides to return to their villa in the south.

However, things are not what Helena and Constantine expect. Helena and Constantine learn from Constantius's aide-de-camp, Legate Curio, that Constantius is now emperor over the West (Occident) while Galerius rules over the Orient (the East). Both Diocletian and Maximian ordered Constantius and Galerius to divorce their wives and remarry. Constantius is now married to Emperor Maximian's daughter, Princess Theodora.

A devastated Helena, returns to their house in Verulam with Constantine and Favonius. It is during this period of suffering over the abandonment by her husband that Helena first learns of the Christian faith through a slave. Out of curiosity she decides to see Albanus, a Christian priest who explains the beginnings of the faith to her. Although skeptical at first, Helena eventually comes to respect the Christians and advocate for them when they are persecuted. She begins to find the cruelty of the Romans towards slaves and Christians offensive.

When her son, Constantine eventually becomes Emperor, defeating Maxentius and capturing Rome, Christianity is made the state religion and the old Roman gods are abolished.  Through a series of visions, Constantine comes to believe that the God of the Christians is on his side. Soon after, Helena becomes a Christian. But the ambitious Helena, now elderly woman, is determined to find the one true cross of Christ. To that end, she travels to the Holy city of Jerusalem and begins her search.

In De Wohl's novel, Helena is portrayed as a dynamic character, regal, ambitious and open minded. Her suffering as a result of the abandonment of herself and her son by her husband Constantius opens her to the possibilities offered by the Christian faith. But Helena's conversion is gradual and takes place over many years.

Helena's discovery of the Christ's Holy Cross is also portrayed in this novel. Tradition holds that St. Helena discovered the true cross during a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 326 A.D. Christians, now free to practice their religion were able to travel to the Holy Land and Helena undertook this journey with the intent of finding these holy relics. Helena traveled to Mount Calvary where she found a temple to the goddess Venus built by the pagan Romans to prevent Christians from worshipping at the place of Christ's crucifixion. Helen was able to locate three crosses as well as nails and the inscription placed on Jesus's cross. She was able to determine the true cross by having a very ill woman in Jerusalem touch all three crosses. Only one cross, the true cross healed her. In de Wohl's novel, a young boy is cured of a withered arm.

In Father Damien And The Bells, authors Arthur and Elizabeth Sheehan have written an engaging account of Damien de Veuster's journey to sainthood. Damien, who was born Joseph de Veuster, grew up in Tremelo, in Flanders, Belgium. His father was a farmer. Joseph or Jef as he was called, was the youngest in the family and was responsible for tending the sheep.

August and Jef loved to hear their mother read stories from The Lives of the Holy Martyrs and Hermits. After four years of study at the Werchter village school Joseph stayed home to help his father on the family farm. He was a strong young man who loved physical labour. However his father, Francis de Veuster worried about Joseph and believed that he was different and destined for something else. So he arranged for his son to attend the academy in Braine-le-Comte, located in Hainault, southern Belgium so that Joseph could learn French. After that he would learn the grain business to help the family farm.

Meanwhile Joseph's brother Auguste entered the seminary of the Fathers of the Sacred Hearts, taking the name Pamphile.

At Braine-le-Comte, Joseph soon endeared himself to his classmates. But he was a deeply spiritual young man, often spending his nights in prayer. He was beginning to feel the call to a priestly vocation. At this time his sister Pauline entered the Ursiline Sisters in Holland. When his letter to his parents suggesting his vocation was not immediately answered, Joseph mentioned his intentions to Pamphile during one of his visits. His brother suggested he join the Fathers of the Sacred Hearts and eventually that is what came to happen. Upon his entry he took the name of Damien.

In the seminary of the Picpus Fathers in Louvain, Damien's unusual physical strength and good health did not go unnoticed. He practiced many denials, often sleeping on the floor and giving up his portion of meat at meals. In July of 1863, Pamphile learned he was to sail to the missions in Honolulu, Hawaii in October. But it was not to be. Pamphile became ill in October, during the typhus epidemic of 1863 and was unable to travel. Determined to take his brother's place, Damien wrote the Father General asking permission to travel to Hawaii. His request was granted.

This was to set Damien on the path as a missionary in Hawaii and ultimately his life's work with the lepers on Molokai. Father Damien's love of hard work, his unusual physical strength and his compassion for those suffering from what was in his time an incurable disease were to mark his ministry.

Discussion

Overall the quality of these three Vision novels is good. Each writer succeeds in giving readers a sense of what life was like in the time the saint lived. Each book manages to identify for young readers,  the virtues that these holy men and women practiced, and which ultimately led them to lead sainthood.

In the case of St. Pius X, it was his practice of prayer and poverty at an early age that set him on the path to sainthood. He routinely gave everything away he had, including his money, food and even his coat. St. Helena, is remembered for  her work for the church and for the poor and for her determination to find the relics of Christ's crucifixion. In the case of St. Damien, young readers will get a definite sense of how the practice of the Catholic faith was a part of daily life for Dutch Catholics. This holy family produced four religious vocations: his older sisters Pauline and Eugenie became nuns and his older brother Augustus became a priest.

For all three saints the path to holiness took a lifetime. For St. Pius X and St. Damien their faith was nurtured within the family where it was taken seriously and a part of everyday life. For St. Helena her conversion occurred gradually over the course of her life, nurtured by the example of the Christian community. De Wohl suggests that the kindness of Christians towards her situation led Helena to consider the faith, as her gods offered her nothing. She was resistant to conversion because as a Roman citizen she struggled with the manner of Christ's death - his crucifixion. "How could she believe in a God who allowed himself to be crucified, who died the most shameful death, hanging between two criminals?" For Helena, the cross was a barrier to her conversion. Albanus tells her that the cross is the obstacle to most Christians but that unlike the pagan gods, the Christian God has suffered both with us and for us. In de Wohl's account, it is her discussion with Albanus, who relates how trees are central to many pagan religions, that plants within Helena the seed of a desire to find the true cross.

Helena was a woman who did nothing by halves. From Butler's Lives of the Saints we read, "It appears from Eusebius, that St. Helen was not converted to the faith with her son, till after his miraculous victory; but so perfect was her conversion, that she embraced all the heroic practices of Christian perfection, especially the virtues of piety and almsdeeds...."

Many of the Vision books have been republished by Ignatius Press in the last 20 years with refreshed covers that are appealing to modern readers. Excellent for children and teens interested in learning more about specific saints. Suitable also for adults.

Book Details:

St. Pius X: The Farm Boy Who Became Pope by Walter Diethelm, O.S.B.
San Francisco: Ignatius Press   1994
163 pp.

St. Helena and the True Cross by Louis de Wohl
San Francisco: Ignatius Press   2012
158 pp.

Father Damien and the Bells by Arthur and Elizabeth Sheehan
San Francisco: Ignatius Press    2004
168 pp.

What Makes A Van Gogh A Van Gogh by Robert Muhlberger

The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Series of What Makes A.... A...." introduces young readers to a series of famous artists. For this post I will review one of the books in this series, What Makes A Van Gogh A Van Gogh?.

Each book in the series follows a similar format, beginning with an introduction to the artist. This introduction provides some background information about the artist's early life.

In What Makes A Van Gogh, readers learn that Vincent Van Gogh was a person who "inherited a deep respect for humanity" from his minister father, while his passion for art and nature came from his mother. Van Gogh was a hard-working student who studied a number of languages. But school was not his forte and he quit when he was sixteen. Van Gogh worked in an art gallery, as a school teachers and then a minister. But eventually Van Gogh came to believe that he was called to be an artist.

What Makes A Van Gogh follows Vincent's artistic journey from its beginnings in 1885 when he painted his first masterpiece. This painting was of a group of peasants eating their dinner of potatoes.  He used his friends, the DeGroots making many sketches before finally paint the larger portrait. From Holland, Van Gogh traveled to Antwerp and then on to Paris where his brother Theo lived. One of the first people Van Gogh met in Paris was the owner of an art supply shop, Julien Tanguy. Their friendship was to prove an important influence on Van Gogh and his art. It was probably due to the Through Tanguy, Van Gogh formed a friendship with fellow artist Paul Signac, who painted with bright colours and used a new technique called pointillism. Although Van Gogh never really adopted pointillism, he did begin to use brighter colours. He painted more than twenty self-portraits during his time in Paris.

In 1888, Van Gogh moved to the town Arles in southern France. This was to be the most productive time of his life, a period where he painted his famous sunflower canvases.  What Makes A Van Gogh explores the influences on Van Gogh's art and technique, which scenes and subjects attracted his interest, and some of the different techniques he used to create his beautiful paintings. Muhlberger devotes a few pages to Van Gogh's famous painting, Starry Night, exploring the some of the features of the painting.

Like the other books in the series, this book ends with a section that uses the title of the book to summarize the special attributes of Van Gogh's art and technique. Although these books are out of print now, they are worth obtaining from your local library or through interlibrary loan. They provide young readers with many interesting facts about the artist, their techniques and paintings.

Book Details:

What Makes A Van Gogh A Van Gogh by Robert Muhlberger
New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art and Viking Press    1993
49 pp.

The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom

The Hiding Place is a moving account of a Dutch family's work in the underground to save Jews during the Holocaust. It is considered a classic in Christian literature today.

Cornelia Ten Boom was the youngest daughter of Casper ten Boom and Cornelia Johanna Arnolda Luitingh. Corrie as she came to be called, was born on April 15, 1892. The ten Boom family was comprised of three older surviving children; Elizabeth who was called Betsie, Willem, and Arnolda Johanna known as Nollie. The ten Boom family belonged to the Dutch Reformed church and were very devout.

Strongly believing that the world should know the story of what happened in Holland, Corrie wrote about her family's experiences in The Hiding Place. In the book, the story begins with her family's party celebrating the 100th anniversary of their watchmaking and repair shop located in Haarlem. The shop had been founded by her grandfather Willem ten Boom. It is 1937, only a few years before the horror that will soon consume Europe and come to be known as the Holocaust. Corrie is forty-five years old, her older sister Betsie is fifty-two.

In celebration of their anniversary, the shop and family home begins filling with bouquets of flowers from friends and patrons. In addition to Nollie and Willem attending, both of whom now have their own homes, the family is visited by many people including the mayor of Haarlem, the postman and policemen.

Soon talk at the party turns to the worsening situation in Germany with the arrival of Willem who is accompanied by a dazed and injured young Jewish man. Willem, who runs a home for elderly Jews in Hilversum tells Corrie and her family that the man, Herr Gutlieber whose lower face is badly burned was set on fire by boys in Munich. He managed to flee Germany on a milk truck, arriving this morning in Hilversum.

Corrie remembers that Willem had been studying what was going on in Germany for years. In 1927 he wrote about the unprecedented "contempt for human life" that was growing in the country. He noted the German clockmakers who were suddenly and mysteriously no longer open for business and that they were all Jewish.

There are more signs that things in Germany are deteriorating when Corrie's father hires a young German apprentice named Otto to work at the shop. A member of the Hitler Youth, Otto comes only once to listen to Corrie's family's nightly reading of the scriptures. The Old Testament, according to Otto, "is the Jews' 'Book of Lies' ". Soon the ten Booms learn of other disturbing events. Otto's landlady discovers a large knife in his bed. But it is Otto's cruel treatment of the old clockmender, Christoffels that moves Corrie's father to fire him. Willem reveals that Germany is teaching its young people not to value the elderly who they consider to "have no value to the state."

War comes to Holland in 1940 with the invasion of the country by Germany. For five days the country's army attempts to fight off the Nazis but eventually they are overwhelmed and surrender, with the Queen fleeing to England.

At first life in occupied Holland is little changed except for the late curfew, the presence of German soldiers, and the takeover of the Dutch press which prints German propaganda. At night Corrie and her family listen to the aerial dogfights between the English and German planes, as Germany uses Holland as a launching point for the bombing of England.

But gradually the true horror of the occupation begins to creep into daily life. Minor attacks on Dutch Jews grow into bolder attacks and outright discrimination. Parks, libraries, restaurants and theatres all ban Jews who are now required to wear the six point Jewish star on their clothing. People begin to disappear, as evidenced by the unclaimed watches in the ten Boom shop.

Corrie and Betsie and their father begin to discuss how they might have to help their Jewish neighbours. That chance comes much sooner than expected, in November of 1941. One day Corrie and Betsie watch as German soldiers ransack Weil's Furriers, ordering Mr. Weil out of his store at gunpoint, ransacking their apartment and stealing their furs. Needing to find a safe place for Mr. Weil and make sure his wife knows not to return home from Amsterdam, Corrie takes the train to Willem in Hilversum. With the help of Willem's son Kik, they find a safe place for the Weils.

As the situation for Dutch Jews worsens, Corrie and her family become increasingly involved in helping them. And their efforts of resistance do not go unnoticed. On Sunday, May 10, 1942, Peter, who is the organist at the Dutch Reformed church in Velsen, plays an inspiring rendition of the Dutch national anthem, Wilhelmus, which has been forbidden by the Nazis. He is arrested in the evening. Each evening, the ten Booms found Dutch Jews making their way to their alley door, all in need of a hiding place from the Nazis. Hoping to get help from Willem, Corrie is told that he now is being watched all the time and that it is better if she seeks out her own resources to help those coming to her. 

Needing ration cards for the Jews who come to the Beje, Corrie seeks out Fred Koornstra who used to read the electric meter at the Beje. As the needs grow, Corrie begins to realize that they are friends with half of Haarlem: nurses and clerks and people in almost all the businesses. She would trust God to lead her to the people who could help. But the real break comes when Kik takes her to a meeting of the "underground" There "Pickwick" whose real name was Herman Sluring, introduces Corrie to a man, whom she only ever knew as Mr. Smit - the name used by all members of the underground - who told her she needed a secret room. This "Mr. Smit" would turn out to be one of Europe's finest architects and it was he who built the "hiding place" in the ten Boom's home.

As the hunt for Holland's Jews intensifies, Corrie and her family find they are taking more and more risks. Soon this dangerous work will cost some their freedom, others, their lives. Their faith in God and his providence are their guiding light through the darkest of times.

Discussion

The Hiding Place is much more than just a recounting of one family's experiences during the Nazi occupation of Holland. It is much more than a memoir of Dutch resistance. It is a testament to Christian faith acted upon in a time of great evil. Corrie and Betsie were determined to follow God's will in everything in their lives, sometimes at great cost to themselves and those they loved.

Corrie became an integral part of the Dutch underground, obtaining ration cards, helping Jews to safe houses and even allowing the Beje to undergo renovations creating a secret room. Willem was involved in hiding Jews, along with his son Kik. There was never any question in Corrie and her family's minds as to whether they would help their Jewish neighbours. Service was already an integral part of their lives. It was only a matter of how. Their Christian faith demanded nothing less.

The ten Boom family's life was framed and informed entirely by their Christian faith. Casper ten Boom read scripture to the family at 8:30 in the morning before beginning his work in the watch shop and at night before bed, asking "God's blessing on us through the night." Their mother visited the sick and the poor, "cooking and sewing for the needy in the neighborhood...". Every event in their lives was informed by their Dutch Reformed Protestant faith. For example,  Corrie accompanied her mother who was visiting a young mother whose newborn baby had just died. This experience of death haunted Corrie and she became so distraught that later at home she was unable to eat dinner. Her fear was for the death of her father, Mama and her sister Betsie. Her father uses this moment to impart some of his faith and wisdom, reminding Corrie that he gives her the train ticket just before boarding, when travelling to Amsterdam. "...And our wise Father in heaven knows when we're going to need things, too. Don't run out ahead of Him, Corrie. When the time comes that some of us will have to die, you will look into your heart and find the strength you need -- just in time."

L to R: Nollie, Corrie, Casper, Cornelia, Willem and Betsie

Life was lived in service to others in the ten Boom household and Corrie's mother and aunts were exemplary in that regard. Corrie mentions the numerous ways her mother and aunts served their friends and neighbours. Her mother is described as having knit "caps and baby dresses", "composing cheery messages for shutins" When Tante Jans is diagnosed with diabetes, then a terminal illness, she decides to spend what time is left for her, organizing a center for the soldiers, writing and fund raising. When her disease progresses and she has only weeks left, Tante Jans is distraught because she believes she has not done enough in her life to merit salvation. Her worry shows how important service to others was in the ten Boom family and had been for generations.

Perhaps Corrie's birth on Good Friday, April 15, 1892 was a sign of what was to come. She was not expected to survive but she did and grew up to be a woman with strong Christian principles. During an aerial battle over their city, Corrie experienced a premonition in the form of a vision about her family.

While praying for their country as the Nazi invasion began, Corrie experienced this following terrifying vision. "Then as I watched, a kind of odd, old farm wagon -- old fashioned and out of place in the middle of a city -- came lumbering across the square pulled by four enormous black horses. To my surprise I saw that I myself was sitting in the wagon. And Father too! And Betsie! There were many others, some strangers, some friends. I recognized Pickwick and Toos, Willem and young Peter. All together we were slowly being drawn across the square behind those horses. We couldn't get off the wagon, that was the terrible thing. It was taking us away -- far away, I felt -- but we didn't want to go...." At the time Corrie had no idea what the vision could possibly mean, but years later, when she, her sister Betsie, Peter, Nollie, Pickwick and her father are taken away after a raid on her house, Corrie remembers the dream. It was a warning, perhaps to help her prepare for what was to come.

As the occupation continued, Corrie was deeply conflicted as to how they would work in the underground given the rumours about the types of resistance involved. "The rumors tended to get more spectacular with each repetition. But always they featured things we believed were wrong in the sight of God. Stealing, lying, murder. Was this what God wanted in times like these? How should a Christian act when evil was in power?"

It is something that Corrie and her family struggled with as the months went by. After a search by German soldiers for young men for forced work, the family argued over whether it was permissible to lie to protect someone. While Nollie believed that "God honors truth-telling with perfect protection!" as her daughter Corky had just done. But Corrie is not so certain.

The title of Corrie's autobiography is more than just a reference to the secret room in the Beje. It is also a spiritual reference, one Corrie did not realize until she was in prison. Watching ants hiding in the wall of her cell Corrie understands the significance of having a special safe place in Christ. "And suddenly I realized that this too was a message, ...For I too had a hiding place when things were bad. Jesus was this place, the Rock cleft for me..." Later on while suffering from edema in the hospital at Ravensbruck, Corrie wonders what if....and then remembers, "There are no 'ifs' in God's kingdom. I could hear her soft voice saying it. His timing is perfect. His will is our hiding place. Lord Jesus, keep me in your will...."

This touching account is well worth reading, not only for the heroic efforts of the ten Booms, but more for the remarkable spiritual gems contained within.

To learn more about the ten Boom family The Corrie ten Boom House website (https://www.corrietenboom.com/en/family-ten-boom) has many interesting details.

ten Book family image: https://renovare.org/articles/this-too-is-in-his-hands

Book Details:

The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom
Crossing Classics
228 pp.

A Boy Called Slow by Joseph Bruchac

Joseph Bruchac's A Boy Called Slow tells the story of how the legendary Lakota warrior, Sitting Bull came to be named.

A baby boy was born in the winter of 1831 to the family of Lakota warrior named Returns Again. This family was part of the Hunkpapa band of the Lakota Sioux tribe. Children were usually named according to a dominant trait or the way they behaved.

Returns Again's son was given the name Slow because everything he did took a long time. It was a name the boy did not like. A Lakota boy could change his name only by doing a brave deed. And so that is just what Slow decided to do!

Discussion

Accomplished Native American author Joseph Bruchac has written a simple picture book that introduces children to the early life of Lakota Sioux warrior Sitting Bull.

Sitting Bull was the son of the warrior Returns-Again. He was born in 1831. During his lifetime he would live to see the loss of his traditional lands and the destruction of  his people's way of life because of the westward expansion of white settlers.

Although he eventually became a great warrior, as a young child Sitting Bull seemed to lack the necessary attributes of one. He took forever to do anything and so earned the name Slow. However, this changed as he grew older. He killed his first buffalo at the age of ten, and led a raid on a rival tribe at the age of fourteen. This earned him the new Lakota name of Tatanka-Iyotanka or Buffalo Bull Who Sits Down.

It was when American white settlers began moving into the traditional lands of the Indigenous peoples that Sitting Bull began to act to protect his people and their way of life. The American and Canadian governments had enacted policies designed to strip the Indigenous peoples in both countries of their land, their food source which was the buffalo and their culture, so that the land could be re-settled by white European immigrants. Sitting Bull became the leader of the resistance to this settler expansion and cultural genocide. He led his people in several key battles including the Battle of Killdeer Mountain in 1863, and in an attack on Fort Rice in 1865. By 1868, Sitting Bull was the leader of the Lakota nation.

Tensions between the Sioux Nation and white settlers dramatically increased when gold was discovered in the early 1870's in the Black Hills of South Dakota. These lands were traditional Sioux lands, granted to them by a treaty with the American government.  Unfortunately, the government refused to honour the treaty and instead insisted the Sioux move to reservations. The Sioux nation under Sitting Bull's leadership refused these terms and decided to fight the Americans. Sitting Bull fought against the U.S. troops and in what was his most famous battle, on June 25, 1876 defeating General George Armstrong Custer. Over two hundred soldiers died along with Custer. Fearing retaliation, many Sioux began moving north into Canada, first into Saskatchewan and then into the Northwest Territories. Sitting Bull came to Canada in 1877.

However, Canada like the United States, did not act honourably in dealing with Sitting Bull. The Canadian government refused Custer sanctuary and food, while the Americans set fires along the U.S.-Canada border, preventing the buffalo from moving north. Facing starvation and with no land to live on, the Sioux began returning to the United States, as did Sitting Bull who moved to the Standing Rock Reserve in North Dakota.  Sitting Bull  continued to urge his people to not relinquish their traditional lands.

In 1889 Native Americans again began to resist the takeover of their traditional lands. When Sitting Bull became involved, the American government, considering him important to the Native Americans' continued resistance, attempted to arrest him at his home. Sitting Bull was killed during the ensuing gunfight.

While Bruchac's picture book only focuses on the Sitting Bull's very early life, it can be used as an introduction to Sitting Bull and the actions of both the United States and Canadian governments towards Indigenous peoples in North America, including the systematic attempt to destroy their culture and way of life. What is missing from this picture book is a simple biography at the back with pictures of Sitting Bull, Custer, buffalo and other relevant topics.

Nevertheless, Sitting Bull's early life is told not just through Bruchac's simple text but also with the beautiful artwork of Rocco Baviera who travelled to the land of the Sioux, the Dakotas. Baviera was able to meet Sitting Bull's great-great-grandson, Isaac Dog Eagle. His paintings have captured the majesty of the Native American culture and the pivotal events of Sitting Bull's childhood.
Highly recommended.


Sitting Bull image: https://www.biography.com/political-figure/sitting-bull

Book Details:

A Boy Called Slow by Joseph Bruchac
New York: Philomel Books     1994

Black Fox of Lorne by Marguerite De Angeli

Black Fox of Lorne tells the story of twin boys, Jan and Brus who travel from their home in Norway to start a new life in England and their adventures after they are shipwrecked.

Jan and Brus are thirteen-year-old twins who live with their father Harald Redbeard and their mother Ragnhild who is a Dane.  Their farm is located above a fiord in Norway on the southern coast. The twins have been trained by their father in many skills including the art of poetry, carving letters on rune sticks, learning the laws of their people so they can participate in decisions, how to handle weapons and care for animals. They also know how to sail, repair boats and shoot with a long bow. 

Their father, Harald Redbeard decides he must travel to a new land to make his living. He is the foster son, having been adopted at the age of ten, after his parents were lost at sea. As a foster son, he cannot inherit land unless agreed to by the sons of his foster father. However his elder foster brothers have inherited all their father's land, leaving none for Harald.  He has already sent his two older sons, Hardi and Bran with Gudmond the Bold to search out a new place but having never returned, they are believed lost.

Now Harald decides he will journey to England because his wife's countryman, Heming the Dane has settled there and will welcome them. At dinner that night, Harald tells them they will sail to England in three ships.Harald's own ship, Raven of the Wind will carry Harald, Jan, Brus and their warriors. The Hawk will carry Ragnhild, their nurse Catriona and the women and children. The third ship, Sea Wolf will carry the horses, cows, geese, hounds as well as hay and fodder for the animals.

In exchange for giving his foster brother Agnar his cattle, land and houses, Harald was given money for the boats and an ancient brooch, booty from the Franks two hundred years earlier. This brooch is believed to protect from evil and head wounds. Harald also warns the twins that their trick of switching places, pretending to be the other can be used to their advantage. Although the two boys are identical, they are very different; Brus loves hunting, hawking and caring for animals while Jan is the poet.

When summer begins, the three ships set sail. Their second day at sea is stormy and Harald decides to sail for the Orkneys. While they are able to find safe harbour, they have lost sight of the two other ships. The next day they sail out in the hopes of finding the lost ships however another storm blows. For three days the Raven struggles to stay afloat but the storm subsides on the fourth day. Although the Raven has some damage, they are safe and Harald believes they are near the Western Isles. Once more the sea becomes rough but this time the Raven is tossed onto the rocks and sunk. Harald Redbeard, his sons Jan and Brus and fourteen men are all who survive, swept onto the shore.

When Jan goes to get water, he is set upon and captured by a group of thirty clansmen and ordered to take them to his father's camp.Harald and the warriors hear the Scots coming, and he orders Brus to hide. A tall Scotsman, introduces himself to Harald as Began Mor, Thane of Skye, the Winged Isle. He asks Harald why he has come to Began's land and invites him to celebrate the betrothal of his daughter Nineag to Gavin Dhu, the Laird of Lorne.

In Began Mor's keep, Harald is set beside Began, while each one of Harald's men is set between two of Began's men. Brus has followed them and now watches over the hill into the courtyard. The soothsayer tells of the history of the land and how Gavin Dhu known as Gavin the Black will wed Nineag the White at the Christ Mass. The monk tells the gathering the story of Christ, his birth, death and resurrection. Afterwards they all make the sign of the cross. The story causes Brus to wonder since his father Harald had not been one to accept the Christian religion.

However the feast quickly turns into a battle after one of Harald's warriors attacks Began Mor's men. The entire party of Norse warriors is slain and thrown over the walls onto the rocks. Jan is spared and taken prisoner. However, Brus who witnesses everything discovers that his father is still alive and carries him to a cave to care for him. While out to get water, Brus returns to the cave and discovers his father has been murdered and the brooch stolen. He is determined to avenge his father's murder and recover the family's talisman.

When a column of horses led by Gavin of Lorne and his men leave the castle, Brus follows knowing that Jan is a prisoner. The two boys eventually find a way to meet and Brus tells Jan the fate of their father. Over the next few days, because they are identical twins, Brus and Jan find ways to switch places. As the boys travel through Scotland, they meet many Christians who teach them about their faith and urge them to not be so quick to avenge their father's murder. As they build allies among the simple workers who have seen their lives destroyed by Gavin, Black Fox of Lorne and the cruel Began Mor, the twins also uncover a treacherous plot that threatens the very king of Scotland!

Discussion

De Angeli has crafted a story that offers young readers a fascinating picture of tenth century Scotland. This is a story with the themes of vengeance and betrayal countered by forgiveness and faith.

As the twins travel through Scotland to Gavin's keep, they meet several Scots who teach them about Christianity. The twins know about Christianity because in their country, the father Harald refused to convert as ordered by the Norse king. However, once in Scotland they begin to learn about the Christian faith through the various people they meet on their journey. It is a journey that will test their intelligence and resourcefulness, but also their very beliefs.

Jan first encounters the story of Christ from Donald a shepherd who feeds him. Jan tells Donald what has befallen his family and that he intends to avenge his father's murder. But Donald tells him, "Vengeance is the Lord's. Beware lest ye find that for which ye seek! It can be an evil thing! The Lord says, 'Forgive them as I forgive you.' "  He then tells Jan the story of Christ's birth, death and resurrection as well the miracles of St. Andrew in converting the Scots. Jan who is perhaps the gentler of the twins is open to the message. "Jan listened with all his heart. This was a wondrous tale indeed. The shepherd's tale had eased the burden of grief in him. He must tell Brus."

Brus first encounters the Christ story from Morag, a crofter's wife who gives him shelter. When he tells her of his plan to avenge his father's murder, she says, "The Lord will take care of our enemies...if we trust Him and bide His time." But Brus is not open to this advice, stating, "No son leaves his father's death unavenged. And who is this God? We have many gods." Even though Morag explains Christmas to Brus, he is not ready for it insisting, "It is for his sons to avenge him."

Jan who is renamed Ian by the Scots struggles with his anger whenever he sees Gavin wearing his father's brooch. However, Murdoch Gow, a smithy who is also a prisoner and whose wife and children were murdered by Gavin teaches Ian that "God's ways are not our ways. We must have faith, for even when all seems against us, we later find that all was for the best." Ian questions Murdoch as to why Gavin makes the sign of the cross when he is cruel and a traitor. Ian knows his father Harald would never give a sign of peace and then kill innocent people as Black Gavin has done. Murdoch explains that some "...make the sign of the cross, those who speak the name of the Christ, the Holy One, in lip service only..." Ian gradually comes to a better understanding of the Catholic faith through the people he meets in Black Gavin's castle.

A young boy his own age, Alan MacDugal, is the son of Dugal who was also murdered by Black Gavin. His mother has been imprisoned elsewhere and their lands have been stolen by Gavin who has set himself up as Thane of Lorne. This means Ian and Alan have a common enemy in Gavin. Seeing Alan praying in the castle for his imprisoned mother's safety further intrigues Ian, "Could he, Ian, make a prayer to Alan's God, for the safety of his own mother?" He wonders, "Who is this God? What is the spell made by crossing the breast and touch the forehead, whispering words?"

Brus again encounters Christianity in the cottage of the shepherd, Gregory, his wife Una and their little son Tomas. He learns more about the saints and disciples who came after Christ. It is Gregory who suggests to Brus that maybe he was sent to Scotland for a reason not yet known. Brus's aversion to the new faith is seen when he finally meets up with Ian in the castle and hears his twin brother calling on God's help. Brus questions him, "With God's help? What mean you with this talk?" said Brus angrily. "What of the gods of our fathers? Are you gone soft, or simple?"

Both boys have the chance to exact revenge on Black Gavin for their father's murder. Ian has the chance to kill Gavin when they stop to drink from a stream but he hesitates because he has been taught that to kill an enemy from the back is the way of a coward. Brus too has the chance when he is accompanying Gavin on horseback. Gavin is pitched from his horse and hits his head on a stone, falling headfirst into a stream. With Gavin's head underwater, Brus has the chance to do nothing and simply leave him to drown but he does not. Instead, like his twin brother, Brus remembers his father's teaching to "...be just to all men.' But was it 'just' to save the life of an enemy? ' Yes,' Murdoch Gow said. 'Love thine enemy, hate him not, but hate the thing he does.' Was he, then becoming soft like Ian? He must watch lest he forget his purpose."

But when Brus travels to the priory with Gavin he is impressed by the crucifix in the chapel. "The broken figure hanging from the rood above the altar held Brus's gaze. This, then, was that Christ of whom he heard so much, who had given His life for His friends. He had been a noble warrior."

De Angeli populates her story with both good and bad characters in Christian Scotland, making the story realistic. It is the simple folk who live out their Christian faith, who have the most impact on Brus and Ian. Their imparting of some of the basic beliefs of Christianity to the twins, add to the code of honour they have learned from their father Harald. While their desire for revenge remains strong, they remain true to their warrior code of honour, resisting revenge in a way that is dishonourable. Eventually, justice is meted out to those guilty, in circumstances that protect the boys. Impressed by the sacrificial Christian God, Christ resonates with the two boys, and it is their mother's acceptance of Christianity that finally pushes them to accept the Christian faith.

Black Fox of Lorne is an exciting tale of betrayal, murder and political intrigue, but also one of justice, faith and forgiveness. Readers will be interested in the details the author incorporates into her story about life in tenth century Scotland. De Angeli's exquisite pencil sketches portray some of the events in the story.

Book Details:

Black Fox of Lorne by Marguerite De Angeli
Garden City, New York: Doubleday    1956
91 pp.

Village of Scoundrels by Margi Preus

Village of Scoundrels is a fictional story based on true events that happened in Le Chambon-sure-Lignon and nearby villages located in southern France during World War II. These villages worked together to save countless Jewish children from being murdered by the Nazis.

The story begins in early December of 1942 with the arrival of twenty-two-year-old Inspector Perdant to the fictional village of Les Lauzes. The region where the village is situated has been "living in its own little way outside the rules of the current government". Perdant is determined to see that change. He knows that the village boarding houses are likely hiding foreign Jews and other "undesirables".

Leon and Sylvie, brother and sister, live in a boarding house called Sunnyside. Henni, along with Madeleine, lives in a house called the Beehive along with many children who have come from French concentrations camps. Henni was rescued from the concentration camp at Guz by Madame Desault, who is a Jew. The Beehive is run by Monsieur Boulet. Food and care have transformed the children from being malnourished, angry and prone to stealing, to smiling and healthy.

One night Perdant, out walking the deserted streets, catches young Jean-Paul Filon, a seventeen-year-old riding a bicycle without a headlight and tickets him. Later that night, in his boarding house called Sunnyside, Jean-Paul tells Sylvie that the ticket is useful because it acts as a proof of identity signed by a local policeman. This further cements his forged identity as Jean-Paul Filon. He shows Sylvie his identity card, anxious to see if it is good enough. Leon examines it and believes it to be very good.

Jean-Paul tells them about working as an office equipment repairman. His real name is Otto and one day he went to the office of the prefect of Nice on the pretext of repairing a typewriter in the prefect's office. There he was able to type a letter authorizing the release of his mother Eva Grabowski. The letter worked and they were able to come to Les Lauzes, with fake identities: Otto as Jean-Paul Filon and his mother as a middle-aged Turkish-Russian spinster named Mademoiselle Varushkin.

Inspector Perdant's attempt to "pay a friendly call" on the Beehive boarding house one snowy evening is thwarted by Sylvie, Leon and Jean-Paul. Hannukah celebrations are happening in the boarding house and if Perdant enters, it will be disastrous. To prevent this, Sylvie, Leon and Jean-Paul engage him on the doorstep of the boardinghouse. When Perdant mentions that he heard singing, they begin to sing the Marseillaise loudly, drowning out the sound of the Hannukah celebrations going on inside and saving the Jewish children from certain discovery.

The next day Jean-Paul is visited by ten-year-old Jules who offers to help him. Jean-Paul warns Jules that helping is risky, that he can't know what the documents he delivers say or who they are for. Jules is undeterred and determined so Jean-Paul takes him on.

By December, 1942, wounded German soldiers are billeted at the hotel next to the boarding house where the Jewish children are living. Some of the children believe the presence of the Nazis is due to a letter some wrote protesting the roundup of thirteen thousand Jews in Paris, including four thousand children. However, some of the children believe that they must speak out against the Nazis and their French collaborators.

On Christmas Day 1942, the service at the village church prompts many to think about what is happening in their country and their little village as the pastor recounts the Christmas story. While each of the children have their own thoughts, Perdant is consumed by his thoughts about the teenagers in attendance. "Like that row of teenagers. That redheaded kid, for one. He'd seen him once pulling his sled along in the middle of the night. What had he been doing out at that hour?"

At the end of the service, Pastor Autin invites Perdant to his home for dinner but Perdant turns him down. Instead, Perdant warns Autin that he knows "...there are homes full of non-Aryans and anti-patriots." and that if he isn't careful he may be arrested too.

Perdant continues his snooping, determined to find out how the Jews are being safely brought to the village. He is determined to do something about the pastors whom he believes are deeply involved in rescuing Jewish children. In the winter of 1942-43 the two pastors and the school director are arrested. More men join the maqisards hiding in the forests. Leon disappears from school. Henni writes her aunt in Switzerland to try to get a visa. Jean-Paul, aided by Leon and Sylvie continues forging documents, ration cards and identities. And Madame Creneau who locates safe houses for the Jewish refugees and who helps them cross into Switzerland, decides that it is no longer safe to hide people. She asks Philippe to take on the task of helping them across the border into Switzerland.

When Jules and his friend Claude Dupont are caught painting anti-German slogans on the road, they are taken to Perdant who questions them. Protecting Claude who is actually giving Perdant clues as to what is going on, Jules maintains that Claude is slow. Perdant lets Claude go but decides to use Jules, whom he suspects of knowing much more than he lets on, as an informant.

As the Gestapo sets up more and more raids, and Perdant becomes determined to sniff out those helping hide the Jewish refugees it becomes necessary to move the refugees out of the village and plateau.  Philippe, Jean-Paul, and others work to help the refugees, while Jules works to convince Perdant that he has chosen the wrong side.

Discussion

Village of Scoundrels tells the story of a fictional French village that works together to save thousands of Jewish refugees from certain death during the Nazi occupation of France. The story is based on the real life events that occurred in the village of Le Chambon-Sur-Lignon during the course of the Second World War.

From 1940 until 1944, the residents of Le Chambon, led by Pastors Andre Trecome and Edouard Theis, helped over five thousand refugees, including up to three thousand Jewish refugees. The village is situated on the Vivarais Plateau in south-central France. Its past history of persecution of the largely Huguenot by French Catholics during the 16th to 18th century may have played a significant part in the resistance activities of the villagers who did not support the Vichy government led by Marshal Petain. However, the efforts to help the Jewish people in this region involved people from all faiths including Catholics, Jews, Evangelicals and nonbelievers.

Preus tailored many of the characters in her novel after real people. At the beginning of the novel Preus provides readers with a helpful alphabetical list of the cast of characters. At the back of the novel in the Epilogue, she describes the real life people who each character is based on. For example, Jean-Paul was based on Oscar Rosowsky, a Jewish teenager who wanted to study medicine and who became a master forger during the war. Oscar was able to forge a letter ordering the release of his mother from Rivesaltes internment camp. The character of Philippe who leads people to safety in Switzerland was inspired by Pierre Piton, who also was a passeur or "people smuggler". Catherine Cabessedes Colburn inspired the character of Celeste, the young girl from Paris who eventually carries messages and contraband for the maquis. Madame Desault, Madame Creneau , Henni and Max are also based on real life people. The character of Jules is based somewhat on Paul Majola who did make deliveries for Oscar Rosowsky. Inspector Perdant is loosely based on policeman Leopold Praly who was shot by the maquis eight months after arriving in Le Chambon.

Village of Scoundrels is a novel whose overarching theme is that of journeys. There are the physical journeys of the refugees rescued from the concentration camps on their way to safety in Les Lauzes, of the refugees from France to Switzerland. But there are also many personal journeys, ones from fear and inaction to courage and resistance. 

An example of this journey can be found in the character of Celeste, a young French girl who watches as events unfold in the village. However, at some point she can no longer just watch. When Mme. Creneau asks Celeste if she knows of anywhere they can hide the refugees safely for a short period of time, "Celeste's urge was to go home, climb into bed, and pull the covers over her head. " She believes everything is falling apart until Sylvie reminds her that "as long as there was something to do, there was hope." This inspires Celeste to tell Mme. Creneau about the abandoned chateau. Mme. Creneau now gives Celeste many responsibilities, which she steps up to take on.

As she and Philippe rush back to the chateau to help those hidden there, Celeste explains to Philippe how she became involved. "For a long time I watched you and others doing things, and I admired you...but I was too afraid. I didn't think I could do it -- I was sure I'd mess up. Then I went on a little mission. I was still afraid, but I was doing something. I had a little power. I could actually do something to resist. To fight back. And the oddest thing happened. That huge dark fear of what could happen -- it went away...I guess I had to do the thing I dreaded most in order to lose my fear of doing it."

Perhaps the most dramatic journey is that of Inspector Perdant. He is sent to a small French village to check up on the locals. It is suspected that the villagers are hiding Jewish children and other "undesirables" as Perdant refers to them. Upon his arrival, Perdant definitely senses that something is amiss in the village, although he's uncertain as to what it might be. He's determined to find the Jewish children he believes are being hidden. He comes to believe that almost everyone from the pastors, to the children to the farmers are complicit. And he is correct.

 His initial warnings and threats have little effect on the pastors or the farmers, so he decides to pressure ten-year-old Jules, a young boy who tends his goats on the hills surrounding the village. But Jules is not afraid of Perdant. In fact, quite the opposite. He becomes Perdant's conscience pushing the young policeman to face the morality of his choices as hunts down those helping save the Jewish refugees.

Perdant is pushed into action when the Gestapo conducts a raid on one of the boarding houses. Humiliated at being outdone by the Gestapo, Perdant is decides he must act despite his repulsion at the brutality of the raid. But he is deeply conflicted.  He goes to the river and throws stones into the water.
"Each stone a bad decision he had made.
The decision to join the national police.
His desire for pormotion that had led him here.
His fawning admiration for the leaders of Vichy and, worse, their German overlords."

Like most French, Perdant doesn't like the Germans but he wonders "Why did he want to do what he did?" Perdant had started out wanting to help France. "He didn't know what to believe anymore, except that he'd seen these kids on their sleds and bikes, singing as they hiked in the woods. They were hardly dangerous. They were just kids! All they wanted was to have a life." Yet Perdant is not yet ready to give up. He wants to make that big arrest.

So he seeks out Jules who he orders to take him to the abandoned Chateau de Roque. Jules knows the maquis are using this old building as a place of refugee so he tries his best to physically thwart Perdant. At the same time Jules attempts to get Perdant to see how his actions are morally wrong.  Perdant believes that "Someone has to keep law and order...." and questions Jules as to why the people of Les Lauzes do not follow the law, stating they cannot "choose the laws you like or don't like, willy-nilly." But Jules tells him that it is not a case of people not "liking" the laws, instead they believe the laws are wrong. "...Everybody knows what is wrong, but some people are too afraid to say or do anything. And some people manage to do a lot of twisty turns in their minds because they wish it to be right. But you can't make it right by wanting it to be right."

Perdant insists that people have to follow the law, but he knows that he is really trying to fill a quota demanded by Hitler in retribution for two German officers killed. Remembering his one successful arrest of two Jewish brothers brings no comfort to Perdant because it is not the capture of the brothers but the resistance of the young teenagers in an attempt to save the boys that fills his mind.

Eventually Jules, desperate to stop Perdant, confronts him with the policeman's gun, asking him what he thinks he is accomplishing by his spying, hunting and arresting of people. It is a question Perdant has asked and now has no answer. "Now he tried to rouse himself to answer with his usual patriotic fervor -- to save France for the Frenchmen, save the country from anti-patriots, communists, immigrants, the Jews who had been working to undermine the civilized nations of Europe....The problem was, he wasn't sure he believed it anymore."

It is only when Jules is seriously wounded that Perdant comes to his senses. He now sees all the resistance's activities with complete clarity,but even more importantly he sees his own actions compared to those of the teens in the resistance. He now must decide what to do with his life; he can continue to go down the path he is on or he can change direction.  Perdant acts to help them. He stalls the police and gendarmes as they arrive at the chateau. When they do raid the chateau, he has bought them the time to escape. It is the beginning of Perdant's redemption.

Village of Scoundrels is a beautifully crafted novel based on a true story of courage and resistance that occurred in France during World War II. It is a novel of courage and resistance in the face of great fear, and redemption. That Preus did extensive research prior to writing the novel is evident. She also visited the region of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon.

There is a wealth of supplementary material at the end of the novel including the detailed Epilogue with information on many key figures in the resistance, a Historical Timeline and a detailed Bibliography listing many resources for further research.

Well written and highly recommended.

Book Details:

Village of Scoundrels by Margi Preus
New York: Amulet Books        2019
302 pp.

Allies by Alan Gratz

Allies tells the story of the D-Day invasion of June 1944 over a twenty-four hour period through the eyes of four main characters and a host of minor ones.

Private Dee Carpenter is only sixteen years old. His parents were political refugees from Germany. When Dee was only five-years-old his Uncle Otto vanished in what has become known in Germany as "Night and Fog". His uncle was a labour leader involved in organizing factory workers in Nazi Germany. Dee's parents did not support the Nazi government's policies. As the Nazis gained more and more support, Dee's parents fled to the United States. Dee's real name is Dietrich Zimmerman. When the United States was drawn into the Second World War, Dee decided to enlist, something foreign nationals were allowed to do. Determined to return to his homeland of Germany to "beat Hitler", Dietrich decided to change his name at the suggestion of the recruiter.

Now in the early morning hours of June 6, 1944, as part of Operation Overlord, Dee finds himself aboard a Higgins landing craft on the English Channel, headed towards Omaha Beach in Normandy, France. With him is seventeen-year-old Private Sid Jacobstein, a hulking six-foot four-inches tall Jewish New Yorker bent on revenge. But their landing on Omaha Beach is a disaster as they face a brutal hailstorm of bullets that cuts down many of the soldiers.

Eleven-year-old Samira Zidane and her mother Kenza are racing along the road outside their village in German-occupied northern France. Being outside after curfew is dangerous. If caught it means automatic arrest and jail and even being shot as a spy. Samira's mother is a spy for the French Resistance.

Samira's parents had been students from Algeria at the University of Paris when the Nazis overran France. Samira's father was killed in student protests against the German occupation. Only seven-years-old at the time, Samira and her mother fled to the countryside, working as messengers for the Resistance.

Now Samira's mother must let the Resistance, hiding in the forest south of Villers-Bocage, know that the Allied forces are set to invade France and begin the liberation of Europe. The message has been broadcast in a code over BBC radio.

In the countryside, Samira and her mother witness Nazi soldiers rounding up French farmers to be executed. This is in retaliation for the murder of  a German officer, Major Vogel. When her mother sees a woman lifting her children out the back window of a farmhouse, she rushes forward to help the woman but is captured along with the French family. Samira narrowly escapes capture by hiding in the family's doghouse. Terrified but determined to help her mother, Samira decides to try to find the "Maquis" as the French Resistance is known. She hopes they will help her free her mother.

After managing to outwit a Nazi patrol at a bridge, Samira is found by the Resistance. She delivers the coded message that informs them of the impending Allied invasion. But when Samira begs them to help her free her mother from the Bayeux garrison, they refuse. The Maquis tell her that the message is also an instruction to carry out Operation Tortoise and Operation Green which involve the sabotaging of roads and rail lines to hinder the German response to the invasion. At this Samira decides she will join the Resistance, although they are not keen to have her.

Nineteen-year-old Lance Corporal James McKay of the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion is from Winnipeg, Manitoba. With him is Lance Corporal Samuel Tremblay, a Cree Indian from Quebec. Both are in the twin engine Albemarle troop transport aircraft, enroute to France where they will parachute in to support the Allied invasion. Their Alpha Company's mission is "to protect the 9th Battalion's left flank on the Merville Battery, then cover their advance to Le Plein." The Merville Battery is an important bunker with four 100-mm howitzer cannons that are aimed at the Normandy beaches where Allied troops will be landing.

However, after a dangerous parachute into France, dodging tracer fire in sky and "Rommel's asparagus" on the ground, James and Sam land mostly unharmed, but seven miles from their objective. Eventually they meet up with survivors from B and C Companies and then Major MacLeod from C Company. Their mission now is to destroy the radio station at Varaville as well as the enemy headquarters there.

Private Bill Richards is a nineteen-year-old Sherman tank driver in the Royal Dragoons. Bill who is from Liverpool, England has a crew that includes his tank commander, Lieutenant Walter Lewis, his co-driver Private Thomas Owens-Cook, and tank gunner Private George Davies, Private Bryan Murphy the tank's gun loader. Their tank, named Achilles, is on a boat with two other Sherman tanks, the Valiant and Coventry's Revenge. Part of Operation Neptune, they are supposed to be landing at the British sector's Gold beach but have drifted west to the American's Omaha Beach. After watching two other tanks, the Indefatigable and Mama's Boy! sink in the rough seas, Lewis orders the boat to take them in closer to shore.

As they land on the beach, Coventry's Revenge is hit by a shell and destroyed. The Achilles hits a mine which disables it, destroying the tank's left tread. Because their tank is too high to fire on the German 88 mm gun that is taking out the tanks, Bill and the others get out of the tank to dig a pit underneath it. He is helped by American soldiers including Dee Carpenter who has managed to make his way up the beach. They are successful but while the Achilles does take out the one German gun, its crew is killed minutes later by a shell from a second German gun.

Corporal Henry Allen belongs to the 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion, an all black unit, in the segregated US Army. Twenty-year-old Henry is from the South Side of Chicago, Ill. and was a premed student at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania when the US entered the war. He decided to train as a medic when the Army wouldn't place him as an officer because white soldiers didn't trust black officers. Now, on Omaha beach among wounded and dying white soldiers, Henry finds the white soldiers have no such qualms.

Henry sets up his medical station on the beach. The invasion at Omaha Beach has been a disaster with hundreds of wounded and dead American soldiers. His own unit, scheduled to come ashore when the beach was secure is now fighting for their lives. As he works through exhaustion to save soldiers, Henry encounters Lieutenant Richard Hoyte, a white soldier from Georgia.  Hoyte who had made Henry's life in boot camp miserable, lies badly wounded on the beach, his right foot destroyed by a mine. Henry helps Hoyte, who now treats him with respect and thanks him for saving his life.

Among the soldiers Henry helps, are Sid who has shrapnel in his leg and Dee who has a bullet in his left arm. Dee and Sid along with other surviving American soldiers decide to get off the beach and try to attack the Germans manning the bunkers. As the invasion continues, each soldier struggles to complete his mission, one step at a time.

Discussion

Allies is an excellent, well-written novel that portrays the reality of the Allied invasion of Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944. In particular the novel focuses in on the battle on Omaha Beach,  located in the American sector, weaving together five story lines over a time period of twenty-four hours.

The main characters are sixteen-year-old American-German immigrant Dee Carpenter and his Jewish buddy Sid Jacobstein, eleven-year-old French-Algerian Samira Zidane and her mother, Private Bill Richards a British Sherman tank driver and his crew, Canadian paratrooper James McKay, and American medic Henry Allen, a black man working to save lives on Omaha beach. Each of these story lines portray the various aspects of Operation Overlord; the invasion by sea with troops and tanks, by air with paratroopers as well as aerial bombardment by the Allies, and help from within France by the French Resistance.

The novel's focus at Normandy is on the battle at Omaha Beach, one of five landings sites for the invasion. Omaha Beach has the distinction of being the sector which suffered the worst casualties during Operation Overlord. The landing on the early morning of June 6 initially was a disaster. The Allies were misinformed as to the strength of the German defenses in this sector. American bombing of the German bunkers the night before was inaccurate and ineffectual. The heavy smoke from the night's Allied bombardment masked the true situation at the beach - the German bunkers remained intact and operational. Rough seas and troops landed in wrong areas also contributed to the disaster.

The first wave of soldiers were decimated by mortars, artillery and machine gun fire. Their landing was supposed to be supported by Sherman tanks, but many sank in the rough seas, were disabled on the beach or destroyed by German shells. Sappers sent to destroy the beach defenses were unsuccessful, as most were killed or wounded. The second wave of troops fared just as badly, this time jammed on the beach with no where to go, making them easy targets for the Germans. Eventually, some soldiers made their way off the beach and were able to secure some of their objectives. Over two thousand American soldiers were either wounded, missing or dead at the end of the day.

Gratz successfully portrays some of the chaos, terror and death of the assault on Omaha Beach. This is no glamorous portrayal of war, although there are moments of valour and sacrifice. There is blood, grit, agony, terror and death. When Dee lands on Omaha Beach, his experience is brutal, shocking and unforgettable:
"Lungs burning, eyes stinging, Dee kicked again, breaking the surface. This time he floated, and what he saw as the waves took him up and down was a scene from hell. Dead bodies bumped into Dee, and the sea was dark with blood. Men screamed and cried out for medics who weren't there. German pillboxes on the high cliffs laid down a deadly cross-fire. "Czech hedgehogs" - huge three-legged, three-armed anti-tank obstacles made from steel bars welded together into an X shape -- littered the beach, undamaged by the Allied battleship barrage. Soldiers lay crumpled on the wet sand around the obstacles like stones."

Dee's experience of watching the death of a tank crew he had been helping only minutes before is also heart-rending.
"Dee scanned the raging bonfire that had been the Achilles, trying to find anyone who had survived. But there was nothing. Whoever had been inside the tank, and the two soldiers who had dug out the crater with him -- they were all dead.
What were their names? Where were they from? Who had they left behind in England who would mourn them when they didn't come home?"
All Dee knows is that the friendly soldier was Bill whom he will remember for the rest of his life.

But the soldiers on the beach are not the only ones who encounter danger and stomach churning fear. As paratrooper James McKay fights his way into France to take out German positions, he witnesses death. As they engage the Germans, James's commander and three other men are  killed instantly from a shell. The finality of it, shocks James.
"But the way Major MacLeod and the others had been there one moment and then just --- just obliterated the next, chilled James to the bone. The thought that his life might end instantly explosively, in the fraction of a second, scared a stillness into hi he knew would be with him the rest of his life."

However, as the fight continues on the beaches and inland, Gratz shows the tide turning and the Allied soldiers beginning to score victories. With this comes hope as the Allies gain a foothold in France. Gratz neatly ties up his story by having some of his characters meet at the end. Dee and Sid reunite after becoming separated when Sid learns Dee is a German. They both meet Samira and her mother, who was saved by the liberation of Bayeux by the Allies.

Gratz also includes a storyline that portrays the courageous contributions made by the French Resistance in helping the Allies. Their work, as Gratz shows, was not without risk. They were a vital component in helping slow the German response to the Allied invasion.

Allies is populated by a unique cast of characters that represent the major players in the invasion; England, Canada, and the United States. The characters are well crafted with Gratz focusing on their humanity, making them very believable. Some are noble like Henry Allen, a black medic who has encountered discrimination both in society and in the army and who chooses to aid the very man who made his life so miserable in boot camp. Some like Richard Hoyte, Allen's tormentor, start out mean, but come to realize Henry's humanity in a moment of intense suffering. Many like James, Dee, Bill and Sid show unwavering courage - acting while filled with fear for their lives, not even certain why they signed up.

Gratz's extensive Author's Note at the back provides good background information on D-Day. On one note however,  Gratz is terribly incorrect. He writes, "Canada was slow to send its soldiers into a war so far from home, so many Canadians who wanted to fight joined the US military to see action right away." This is mostly inaccurate. The Battle of Dunkirk, which occurred from May 26 to June 4, 1940, was an operation to withdraw English, Canadian and Polish troops (among others) from France as they were losing the battle for Western Europe to the Germans. Canada already had troops in Europe fighting by mid-1940. On August 19, 1942, the infamous Dieppe raid was launched. Over six thousand soldiers, the vast majority of which were Canadians, were involved. It was a disaster that led to the deaths of  over three thousand Canadians. Only about fifty American soldiers were involved in the Dieppe raid. It is worth mentioning that it was the United States that was reluctant to send its soldiers into war. In fact, the United States did not enter World War II until after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December of 1941, although they did supply material to the Allied war effort.  

My own father enlisted in September of 1939, along with his three brothers. He was sent over to England immediately to train and was placed into the signal corps. After the Dieppe disaster, the Allies were reluctant to launch another invasion until they were certain there was a good possibility of success. My father was not part of the attacking forces on D-Day but arrived shortly afterwards and was involved in the liberation of Holland. He stayed on as part of the occupying army in Germany after the war.

Gratz provides his readers with an excellent two page map that shows where the events for each character occur. Allies is well written, engaging and tense. This novel will appeal to those who enjoy historical fiction and in particular, those who want to learn more about the Normandy invasion.

Book Details:

Allies by Alan Gratz
New York: Scholastic Press 2019
322 pp.

All In A Drop by Lori Alexander

Antony van Leeuwenhoek lives in the town of Delft, Netherlands. It is a place of tree-lined canals and busy merchants. Antony lives at a time which comes to be known as the Golden Age for the Netherlands. The Dutch own the largest fleet of ships  in the world and travel to many countries bringing in many goods from Africa, North America and Asia.

Antony's family are tradesmen: his grandfather was a beer brewer and his father makes wicker baskets used to transport fragile goods on the ships.

Antony's father dies when is he is quite young. With his mother's remarriage, he is sent, at the age of only eight to a boarding school outside of Delft.

At the age of fourteen, his schooling now finished, Antony moves to Benthuizen to live with his uncle. He sends Antony to Amsterdam to train in a linen's merchant's shop. In Amsterdam, Antony meets people from different countries and cultures.

For six years, Antony works as an apprentice to a linen merchant. Finally ready to start his own business, he moves back to Delft in 1654. He is only twenty-two years old and is now a draper, a person who sells cloth.

To check the quality of the cloth he sells, Antony uses a magnifying glass that helps him to see the number of threads in a swatch of cloth.

In 1668, a trip to London, England for vacation changes the course of Antony's life. While in London, he learns about the work of Robert Hooke, an English scientist who uses a microscope to view objects very closely. Hooke has written a book called Micrographia about what he's seen through his microscope. Although Antony cannot read Hooke's book because it's written in English, the pictures intrigue him.

When Antony returns home to the Netherlands, he decides to build his own microscope. This microscope is different from Hooke's. It has a pea-size lens held between two small brass rectangles and a screw mount to hold a specimen. His first subject is a bit of moldy bread. But what Antony sees is more detailed than the picture in Robert Hooke's Micrographia.

After viewing many different specimens through his microscopes, (each specimen is mounted on its own microscope), Antony decides to show his work to a friend, Reinier de Graaf, a scientist who encourages him to share his findings with the Royal Society in London. At first scientists are skeptical because Antony is unknown to them but they find his observations interesting and they request that he write them each time makes a new observation.

This is thrilling for Antony and he begins his work in earnest, hiring a local artist to draw what he sees in each of his microscopes. But Antony's most famous discovery is yet to come. It is one that one hundred years after his death would lead scientists to make important discoveries about disease.

Discussion

All In A Drop chronicles the important work of Antony van Leeuwenhoek, now considered the Father of Microbiology. Written in third person, Alexander brings to life Antony's efforts to learn about the hidden world that surrounds all of us. His work with what was a relatively new instrument called the microscope demonstrated that an  invisible and unknown world hidden from human eyes existed. This  microscopic was difficult for scientists living in Antony's era to fully comprehend.

 In the chapter, The Father of Microbiology, Alexander considers how Antony's discovery of hidden organisms was to eventually play an important role in medicine. Unfortunately, few scientists in Antony's time, including Antony himself failed to recognize just how important this hidden world of microbes was to the health of mankind. It would be one hundred years before the connection between microbes and disease would be made, allowing doctors to save millions of lives. This delay Alexander believes was likely partly the fault of Antony who worked alone, had no rigorous scientific training, and kept his methods a secret. He never passed on his knowledge through lectures or teaching, although his letters were published in the oldest scientific journal, Philosophical Transactions. Nevertheless, as Alexander writes, "...the work Antony did with microscopes forever changed the way we see the world around us."

Alexander's third person narrative is straightforward, easy to follow and enhanced by the illustrations of Vivien Mildenberger which were rendered in pastels, watercolours and coloured pencil. Included are relevant photographs, a Timeline of Events, a Glossary, an Author's Note which explains the importance of Antony van Leeuwenhoek's work, Source Notes and a Selected Bibliography for further reading. This short chapter book is also indexed. A great introduction to microbiology for young readers.


Book Details:

All In A Drop: How Antony van Leeuwenhoek Discovered an Invisible World by Lori Alexander
New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company    2019
93 pp.


Image credit: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Antonie-van-Leeuwenhoek/images-videos#/media/1/334699/12567

Other Words For Home by Jasmine Warga

Jude lives in a small city in Syria with her mama, baba and her older brother Issa. Their town, situated below the mountains and close to the sea, is very supportive of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. Jude's father runs a store near a tourist hotel. Jude's best friend, Fatima lives across the courtyard their families share. Although Fatima is only a bit older, because she has her period and now wears a headscarf, Jude feels her friend is "kilometers ahead" of her. Both girls love American movies and want to be movies stars, although Fatima also wants to be a doctor.

Jude's most favourite person in the entire world is her brother Issa who has become involved in meetings about democracy and revolution. He wants something better for Syria and he wants change. Their baba is furious that Issa attends these meetings which he considers treasonous but Issa insists that it is Assad who is treasonous. Their mama tells Issa that they should not tempt fate, that life is good however, Issa reminds her that life is not good for everyone in Syria.

On the day of a huge protest, Jude is forced to stay home. The next day her baba shows her pictures in the newspaper of bloodied protesters. After the protest, police are everywhere, at school, the butcher shop, the beach, and there are rumours of people being rounded up and put in jail. In a nearby town, men with stolen tanks and weapons have taken over and are fighting the Syrian army. In Jude's town, people are now openly showing their support for the president by bowing before his picture which is hung in shops everywhere.  Jude's mama is careful to make sure the police are aware of her support for Assad.

Despite the violence, and warnings from Baba, Issa remains committed to the protests. Eventually he moves out of the family home into his own apartment. On the day that Jude is finally allowed to visit him, his apartment is raided by armed police. Issa manages to lead Jude to safety but this leaves their parents terrified. Her father must now stay at his shop to ensure it remains safe. Amid rising tensions, Jude learns that she and Mama, who is expecting a baby, will be visiting her uncle who lives in America. However, both Baba and Issa will remain behind as Baba must stay to care for their store.

After one final party with friends, Jude and Mama travel to Cincinnati Ohio where they are met by Uncle Mazin, his wife Aunt Michelle  who "looks like an American movie star" and her cousin Sarah. Uncle Mazin and Aunt Michelle are very welcoming but Jude's cousin Sarah seems unhappy about their visit. Jude and her mother settle into a bedroom on the third floor of her uncle's huge old home located in a neighbourhood called Clifton. Once they are settled in, they call Baba in Syria.  Their town is safe for now but Jude senses fear in her baba.

In the fall, Jude begins attending the same school as her cousin Sarah. Instead of helping Jude, Sarah shuns her and goes off to be with her friends.  Jude has seven classes including math and ESL. Although Jude knows how to speak some English, she dreads the ESL class. However, in Mrs. Ravenswood's ESL class, Jude finds a place to belong. As she struggles to fit in at school, to cope with homesickness and missing Baba and Issa, her aunt and uncle try to help Jude adjust to life in America. Gradually Jude begins to find her way, make friends and to dream again of a future filled with hope.

Discussion

Other Words For Home is a delightful gem of a novel, written in free verse. The story, which covers about nine months, focuses on a twelve-year-old Syrian refugee's experiences as she struggles to adapt to life in America. Fleeing from the violence of the Syrian Civil War, Jude and her mother travel to Cincinnati to stay with her mother's brother, Jude's Uncle Mazin and his family.

When she first arrives in America, Jude is overwhelmed by the sights and sounds of a country so different from Syria. Everything is bigger, brighter and faster. So much selection and the feeling that "everyone is trying to sell you something", Jude finds herself "... dizzy with want," But Jude also notices another side to America when she sees the poor on the street. She notes that Americans like to label things because "They help them know what to expect." and that her school is filled with many different types of people, with different skin color and shapes and sizes. Jude is also struck by the boldness of Americans as exemplified in restaurant ads.

Warga's portrayal of the struggles a Syrian refugee might encounter in a new country like America seems realistic. The author states that Jude's story reflects the experience of a family friend who was able to leave Syria by plane, a method most refugees did not have to means to use. (Most fled over land and by sea in rickety boats.)  Jude struggles with learning a new language, making friends, understanding a new culture and encounters the ugliness of racism. She must deal with missing her way of life in Syria and with the fear of having her brother missing in Aleppo. Jude must also begin to cope with personal changes as she starts having her period and moves to wearing a head scarf. If her skin colour and heavy accent haven't already set her aside, her head scarf opens her to more visible racism, with unsettling and unkind remarks from both strangers and even her well-meaning Aunt Michelle.

Warga employs the tried formula of a new student who finds herself through participation in a school event such as a concert, competition or school play. In Other Words For Home, Jude gradually attains a sense of belonging, when she takes the bold step of auditioning for a speaking role in the school play, Beauty and The Beast. She is warned by her new Muslim friend Layla, that such roles are not for girls like us.

"Jude, those parts aren't for girls like us...
We're the type of girls that design the sets,
that stay backstage.
We're not girls who
glow in the spotlight."

But Jude is having none of it. She wants to be one of "those girls." The required two minute monologue gives Jude the chance to speak out and speak up.

"Every time I practice,
I think about how wonderful
it feels to speak
for two whole minutes,
with no fear of being interrupted,
with no one saying, Skety.

Just me and my big mouth,
speaking,
being heard."

Auditioning and winning a speaking part, offers Jude the opportunity to be a part of something big, to fit in, to make friends. It is the beginning of her rebuilding her life in America.

One of the themes explored in the novel is that of luck and the belief that those who are able to move to America are "lucky". Jude experiences guilt that she has been able to escape from Syria while so many have not. As the war intensifies and America and other countries begin to close their doors to refugees, Jude tries to find a reason why she deserves to be one of the "lucky" people:

"I search every day for a clue about why I deserve
to be here in Aunt Michelle's kitchen,
safe
and fed.
When so many others
just like me are not.

Lucky. I am learning how to say it
over and over again in English.
I am learning how it tastes --
sweet with promise 
and bitter with responsibility."

As Thanksgiving approaches, both Omar who is from Somalia and Jude struggle with how luck has impacted them. When Omar struggles to mention what he's thankful for, Jude understands.

"Omar goes next.
It takes him a moment to speak,
and I wonder if like me,
he is searching for something to say.
If he is struggling with how you can feel so lucky
and unlucky
at the same time...

we are lucky to be here
when so many others aren't
But we don't understand the luck of
why or how
just the luck."

Other Words For Home is a book about journeys both geographical and personal. There is the obvious journey of Jude and her mother by plane from war-torn Syria to safety in America. A more important one is Jude's own inner journey, as she begins to make her own choices like whether or not to wear a head scarf or to apply for a speaking part in the school play instead of accepting what others might expect of her. A third is Jude's journey from being told "Jude, skety", meaning "Jude, be quiet" to speaking a two minute monologue in front of an audience.

Jude's cousin Sarah experiences her own inner journey as she moves from shunning her cousin and experiencing jealousy over the cultural connection Jude shares with Sarah's father,  to moving towards acceptance. Sarah apologizes to Jude for her unkind remarks, offering to help Jude's friend Layla after their restaurant is targeted in a racial attack. She is drawn into a deeper relationship with her cousin after the birth of Jude's sister, Amal.  Jude's mother's also experiences her own personal journey towards adapting to a new life by learning to speak English, and encouraging her daughter in her own journey of self-discovery.

Although Other Words For Home may not necessarily reflect the typical Syrian war refugee's experience in fleeing the country, it seems realistic in its portrayal of the struggles that newcomers to America might experience in adapting to a different culture and in dealing with discrimination and misunderstanding. Jude is a thoughtful, strong, intelligent girl, whom readers will come to identify with. Warga has put a face to refugees, those who are different and vulnerable, showing their dignity and humanity.

Book Details:

Other Words For Home by Jasmine Warga
New York: Balzer + Bray       2019
342pp.